Oil prices nudged higher and are on track for a weekly gain of more than 1 per cent, as tensions in the world’s top oil-producing region, the Middle East, and a restart in Gaza ceasefire talks in the coming days kept traders on edge, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 climbed 31 cents, or 0.4pc, to $74.69 a barrel by 0642 GMT while US West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 was at $70.48 a barrel, up 29 cents, or 0.4pc.

“We remain of the view that the right price for crude oil currently is around $70 where it is now, as we await fresh price drivers, including the outcome of China’s NPC Standing Committee meeting as well as Israel’s response to Iran’s October 1 missile attack,” IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said in a note, referring to WTI prices.